“Over the past two years, the industry has come together to simplify consumers’ lives by offering a single, trusted, mobile phone-based authentication solution that respects online privacy and helps to mitigate the vulnerability of online passwords,” said Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA. “As Mobile Connect is rolled out globally, mobile operators are fulfilling an important role in the digital identity space, giving users control over their own data and enabling consumers, businesses and governments alike to interact and access online services in a convenient, private, and trusted environment.”

The GSMA’s Mobile Connect solution enables customers to create and manage a digital universal identity via a single log-in solution. The service securely authenticates users, enabling them to digitally confirm their identity and their credentials and grant safe online access to mobile and digital services such as e-commerce, banking, health and digital entertainment, and e-government, via their mobile phones. It works by employing the user’s unique mobile number, combined with a unique PIN for more secure use cases, to verify and grant online access anywhere they see the Mobile Connect logo. All operators and online service providers using Mobile Connect have signed up to the GSMA Mobile Connect privacy principles, which is a core pillar of Mobile Connect.

Additional Deployments and Evolution of Mobile Connect

The GSMA is working closely with operators globally to further extend the adoption of Mobile Connect; operators committed to deliver the service this year include Aircel, AIS Thailand, Bharti Airtel (India), Etisalat (Pakistan, United Arab Emirates), Idea Cellular Ltd, MTN, Ooredoo (Algeria, Myanmar), Orange (Jordan, Poland), SMART Axiata - Cambodia, Smart Communications, Inc., Tata Teleservices, Telefónica Group (Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Uruguay), Telenor (India), T-Mobile Poland and Vodafone (India, Spain). Mobile Connect has also been trialled in two EU Member States, Finland and Spain, to establish proof-of-concept for cross-border authentication of e-government services and online interactions between businesses, citizens and public authorities.

While initially focused on secure and convenient log-in to digital services, Mobile Connect is evolving to deliver secure authorisation of digital transactions and to add context and attributes about the user and the transaction to increase convenience, trust and security for users and online service providers, while respecting users’ privacy. This is currently being trialled in the UK by O2 and Vodafone.

Expanding Mobile Connect Services

Mobile Connect is now in commercial use by a wide range of digital service providers in the launch markets including BDTickets, Bloodlink, Cipika Play, CriticaLink, Dhaka Pixel Ltd., GoGhoom, Homeshopping.pk, LangitMusik, migme (http://mig.me), Mudah, Rozee.pk, TakeMeTour.com (Thailand), Wavoo, WOW and Wunn Zin Bookstore. These companies comprise a range of vertical services such as commerce, finance and banking, government service access, health services, and media and entertainment.

Technology suppliers such as Apigee, Ericsson, Gemalto, Giesecke & Devrient, GMO GlobalSign Oy, MePIN/Meontrust, Morpho (Safran), Movenda, Nok Nok Labs Inc., Orange Business Services, Ping Identity and WSO2.Telco deliver the technology necessary to support Mobile Connect and to enable easy integration with the operators' mobile networks so that users of any mobile network offering Mobile Connect can log in and authorised for any application.

Notes

Further detail on country operators either commercially launched or due to launch in 2016:

The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide, uniting nearly 800 operators with more than 250 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and internet companies, as well as organisations in adjacent industry sectors. The GSMA also produces industry-leading events such as Mobile World Congress, Mobile World Congress Shanghai and the Mobile 360 Series conferences.

For more information, please visit the GSMA corporate website at www.gsma.com. Follow the GSMA on Twitter: @GSMA.